West Asia At War : Repression, Resistance and Great Power Games

By Talmiz Ahmad

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About the book

Events in West Asia constantly demand global attention due to regional conflicts, faith-based divisions, sectarian violence and wars that are often ignited by external powers. Popular agitations for political, economic and social reform frequently make the scenario even more fragile, turbulent and uncertain.

West Asia is a destination for millions of pilgrims to sacred sites venerated by the three Abrahamic faiths – Islam, Christianity and Judaism. It is also at the heart of global energy, trade and financial dynamics, the centre of logistical connectivity projects, and an emerging hub of technological research and development.

As a new world order asserts its claims across Eurasia and the Indian Ocean, West Asia is witnessing new diplomatic initiatives to reshape regional alignments and define the new order. Developments here are of abiding concern for India – it is closely tied to the region in terms of energy, trade, investment, logistical connectivity and the interests of its eight-million strong resident community.

West Asia at War, written by veteran Indian diplomat Talmiz Ahmad, combines an understanding of the diverse forces that are shaping the politics and economics of this region, and paints a portrait that is at once grim, painful, colourful and exciting.

Pages: 544

Available in: Hardback

Language: English

Talmiz Ahmad

Talmiz Ahmad joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1974 and was posted to Kuwait, Iraq and Yemen, and then as Consul General in Jeddah, in 1987-90. After appointments in New York, London and Pretoria, he became the head of the Gulf and Hajj Division in the Ministry of External Affairs in 1998-2000.

He did two stints as ambassador to Saudi Arabia, besides being ambassador to Oman and the UAE, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Director General of the Indian Council of World Affairs.

After retirement from foreign service in 2011, he was in the corporate sector in Dubai and then, from 2016, has been a full-time academic. He holds the Ram Sathe Chair for International Studies, Symbiosis International University, Pune. He has authored three books on West Asian politics, and writes and lectures regularly, on political Islam, West Asia, Eurasia and the Indian Ocean, and energy security.

“

Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad has given a pen picture of the happenings in recent decades in a strategically critical region in our neighbourhood. Of great relevance is the chapter on India’s relations with countries in the Persian Gulf littoral … and more specifically the recent initiatives with the GCC states and with Iran, each of which is mutually relevant in strategic and economic terms. - M. Hamid Ansari, former vice president of India, and ambassador to Afghanistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia

Should be required reading for all those engaging with Middle Eastern issues today … Its scope and depth of analysis, with a perspective that stretches from the Napoleonic invasion of Egypt to the most recent developments, is without parallel. - Tim Niblock, emeritus professor of Middle East Politics, University of Exeter, and visiting professor, Tsinghua University

In his beautifully lucid and original account of West Asia’s recent history, Talmiz Ahmad shows us how to think differently about the region’s politics … It is one of the very rare studies of West Asia that is not written from a Western perspective, and which offers an illuminating analysis of India’s relations with the region. - Faisal Devji, professor of Indian History, University of Oxford

Talmiz Ahmad combines the acumen of an astute analyst with the brilliance of a distinguished career diplomat delivering a deep dive into the international politics of West Asia. - Arshin Adib-Moghaddam, professor in global thought and comparative philosophies, School of Oriental and African Studies, London

The author … introduces the reader to India’s relations with West Asia, reflecting both India’s stance on the main conflicts of the region and India’s relations to the main regional actors. - Erzsébet N. Rózsa, professor at the University of Public Service, Budapest, Hungary

Transcends the Western narratives and demonstrates an Asian perspective on the West Asian rivalries in the past two centuries … offers readers a new discourse and fresh picture of the West Asian conflicts and wars. - Professor Degang Sun, director, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Fudan University, Shanghai, China